Summer Dance Intensive

The University of Kentucky Summer Dance Intensive is a one-week program devoted to choreography and creative practice. The first part of the day’s focus is on dance technique and the second half of the day introduces students to improvisation, composition, and dancemaking. The week ends with the dancers performing their solo or small group dance choreography on the Guignol Stage. This performance is open to family and friends and serves as great opportunity for the dancers to obtain video of their work for college entrance auditions, social media, and dance reel.

The program is designed for high-school and university dance students. Housing is available, introducing high school participants to college life and to assist with future educational dance decisions. 

June 3 - 7, 2024

Classes

Classes take place 9:00am-5:00pm each day of the intensive with breaks between classes and a break for lunch. If participants choose to stay in the dorms, each night there will be a variety of supervised evening activities. Meal plans will be available. All classes will be in the Fine Arts Building. For choreography, the students will be split in half. Some students will be in the dance studio and the others will be in the Guignol Theatre.

Charles F. Dickins Dance Studio

Address

Fine Arts Building, 465 Rose Street, Lexington, KY 40506-0022

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Guignol Theatre

Address

Fine Arts Building, 465 Rose Street, Lexington, KY 40506-0022

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Ballet: Follows a traditional format, but develops the individual voice of movement. Concentration is placed on quality of movement, refining lines and finding new ways for the dancer to move through space.

Contemporary Modern: Embraces the creative side of modern dance fused with contemporary. The class focuses on using technique, flexibility and performance to allow for efficient and sophisticated communication within the choreography.  

Jazz: Emphasizes technical and artistic skills based on a foundation of correct body alignment, movement isolation, rhythmic awareness, musicality, intermediate to advanced vocabulary, auditioning and performance focus, strength, stamina, and flexibility at the intermediate/advanced level. Dynamic range of jazz influences including traditional jazz, commercial jazz, and musical theatre will be explored.

African: Explores the technique, styles, and rhythms of regional and national cultures of Africa.

Improvisation: Explores new ways to move. Movement based improvisation techniques and structures provides a framework for creative physical and self-expression. 

Partnering and Contact: Improvised and choreographed duets will be created with emphasis placed on touch-based safety, non-vernal communication, and awareness. Connections will be made on how the class’s information can inform movement invention.

Composition: This course focuses on creation of a dance in its entirety. The dancers will explore a variety of methods.

Choreography: Teaches new approaches to choreography focusing on space, time and energy. Expands on themes through movement studies, discussions and videos. The students use the labs to also create their own works.

Yoga: The last class of the week uses yoga principals to center the dancer before they perform their choreographic work. Focus on the mind, body, and spirit also helps consolidate the dance intensive week.

Items to Bring For Daily Classes
  • Water bottle  
  • Yoga mat (optional)  
  • Towel (optional)  
  • Hand sanitizer
  • Journal
  • Warm-up clothes/dance clothing/ extra dance clothes

Attire
In order for the instructor to provide proper alignment feedback and anatomical corrections, students must wear appropriate dance attire that will show clean lines: leotard and tights, unitard, or form-fitted pants. Ballet slippers for the ballet class, Jazz shoes for the jazz class, and bare feet for the modern dance portion. If you do not own jazz shoes, ballet slippers will suffice. Dance clothing or workout clothes are needed for the body conditioning class. Pointe shoes are optional, some students like to wear them. We will be on marley, but there will not be rosin in the space.  Hair must be secured away from the face. Please refrain from wearing jewelry that is potentially dangerous or that impedes movement.

Sample Class Schedule

Monday, June 3

  • 9-10:30: Ballet
  • 10:45-12:15: Contemporary Modern
  • 12:15-1:15: LUNCH
  • 1:15-2:45: Improvisation
  • 3-5 Choreography

Tuesday, June 4

  • 9-10:30: Contemporary Modern
  • 10:45-12:15: African Dance
  • 12:15-1:15: LUNCH
  • 1:15-2:45: Composition
  • 3-5: Choreography

Wednesday, June 5

  • 9-10:30: Ballet
  • 10:45-12:15 Jazz
  • 12:15-1:15: LUNCH
  • 1:15-2:45: Improvisation
  • 3-5:00: Choreography

Thursday, June 6

  • 9-10:30: Contemporary Modern
  • 10:45-12:15: African Dance
  • 12:15-1:15: LUNCH
  • 1:15-2:45: Partnering and Contact
  • 3-5:00: Choreography

Friday, June 7

  • 9-10:30: Ballet
  • 10:45-12:15: Jazz
  • 12:15-1:15: LUNCH
  • 1:15-2:45: Yoga
  • 3-5:00 – Choreography Performance in the Guignol
Sample Schedule For Those Staying At Holmes Hall

Resident Assistants  
Two UK dance majors will be serving as resident assistants and helpers during the intensive. They will accompany all groups with minors during the intensive.

Holmes Hall - Creative Arts Living Learning Program

Address

111 Avenue of Champions, Lexington, KY 40508

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Sunday, June 2

  • 4:00-6:00pm  | Check-in
  • 6:00pm  | Dinner  | Champions Kitchen
  • 7:00-8:30pm  | Welcome Dance Class| Dance Studio Fine Arts Building
  • 9:00pm  | Building Curfew  
  • 10:00pm  | Bed Checks

Monday, June 3

  • 8:00am  | Breakfast  |  Champions Kitchen
  • 9:00am-5:00pm  | Dance classes   | Fine Arts Building
  • 5:00pm  | Dinner  | Champions Kitchen
  • 6:00-7:00pm  | Rest  | Student’s room
  • 7:00-8:30pm  | Health and Wellness Lecture/discussion  | Writing room, Holmes Hall
  • 9:00pm  | Building Curfew
  • 10:00pm  | Bed Checks

Tuesday, June 4

  • 8:00am  | Breakfast  | Champions Kitchen
  • 9:00am-5:00pm  | Dance classes   |  Fine Arts Building
  • 4:45-5:15pm  | Campus Tour  | Campus locations
  • 6:00-7:00pm  | Rest  | Student’s room
  • 5:00pm  | Dinner  | Champions Kitchen
  • 7:00-8:30pm  | Hip Hop    | Dance Studio Fine Arts Building  
  • 9:00pm  | Building Curfew
  • 10:00pm  | Bed Checks

Wednesday, June 5

  • 8:00am  | Breakfast  | Champions Kitchen
  • 9:00am-5:00pm  | Dance classes   | Fine Arts Building
  • 6:00-7:00pm  | Rest  | Student’s room
  • 5:00pm  | Dinner  | Champions Kitchen
  • 7:00-8:30pm  | Creativity and Crafts | Art Studio, Holmes Hall
  • 9:00pm  | Building Curfew
  • 10:00pm  | Bed Checks

Thursday, June 6

  • 8:00am  | Breakfast  | Champions Kitchen
  • 9:00am-5:00pm | Dance classes  | Fine Arts Building
  • 6:00-7:00pm  | Rest  | Student’s room
  • 5:00pm  | Dinner  | Champions Kitchen
  • 7:00-8:30pm  | It's A Grand Night for Singing! Performance UK Opera
  • 9:00pm  | Building Curfew
  • 10:00pm  | Bed Checks

Friday, June 7

  • 8:00am  | Breakfast | Champions Kitchen
  • 9:00am-5:00pm  | Dance classes and Final Performance  | Fine Arts Building
  • 5:00-6:30  | Check-out
Summer Dance Intensive Faculty
Hannah Reitz

Hannah is the Assistant Director of Dance at Kelley Puckett Dance Academy. She earned her B.A. in Theatre with a focus in Dance from Morehead State University in Morehead, Kentucky in 2013. She continued her studies at the American Dance Festival in Durham, North Carolina in both Dance and Arts and Administration. Since December of 2014 she has been a leader, advocate, and a former sitting National Vice President for Delta Chi Xi Honorary Dance Fraternity Inc. She continues to pursue her career in Dance Education in the Central, Kentucky area.

Registration and Tuition

Participants (with Parents/Guardians where applicable) are required to separately submit a filled and signed COVID-19 NoticeEmergency ContactCFA Photo/Video Waiver, and Participation Consent forms. Please submit these forms to Susie Thiel as soon as possible after registering. Registration is not complete without signed and submitted legal forms. If any changes occur, The College of Fine Arts will communicate to all summer program participants before arriving to campus. Students must be at least 13 years of age and a high school freshman by Fall 2024 to participate.

Intensive Tuition is $550 for 2024 including a non-refundable summer operating fee. Limit 35 students. Optional Housing is 5 nights, Sunday-Thursday, $47 per night with linens provided, and $37 per night if you bring your own linens. Meal Plan details are currently in the works and a separate registration will be provided once prices are finalized. A discount is available for UK Theatre and Dance current students and alumni to bring tuition costs down to $300, please contact Susie Thiel for your discount code before you register.

Registration Deadline: May 22, 2024

If capacity for the 2024 intensive has been reached, please contact Susie Thiel to be put on the waitlist.

Created 06/29/2021
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Last Updated 03/04/2024